It Could Always Be Worse
by tmntyyh
Summary: As Torn sends Jak and Daxter on a new mission, Jak and Daxter run into a new evil while earning a break, or more. Warnings are inside.
1. Chapter 1

I do not own Jak II, or the characters in it. I make no money writing this…blah…blah…blah; I think you get the point.

Warning: there will be slash later! Don't like; don't read!

**Thoughts**

Jak was barely listening to Torn speak about the new mission he was sending him on. Instead, he was too busy trying not to laugh at the faces Daxter was making about him. Jak did notice how Torn's hand slightly twitched while Daxter began to mock his hair. Then he noticed how Torn's tattoos near his eyes began to form creases. Sensing what was coming, Jak reached out his hand and grabbed Torn by the wrist before his hand could smack Daxter off of the table. Luckily, he had stopped Torn in time, for his hand was a mere centimeters away from Daxter's head.

Daxter noticed the hand approaching and flinched slightly, but when no contact was made, he looked over and saw Jak staring into Torn's eyes. "Whew, that was a close one, good looking out Jak," Daxter said as he ran up to Jak's shoulder, so he could not get hit by Torn for making fun of him.

Torn glared angrily at Jak, who just stared calmly at him, but in his blue eyes, Torn saw a ripple of anger that was almost fully hidden by the younger elf. "Leave Daxter alone," Jak said in a voice that stated that he was not to be messed with.

Torn, not liking this, replied in an equally pissed off voice, "and who are you to give me orders?" Jak smirked as he let go of Torn's wrist, but not before twisting it slightly.

"Do you _really_ want to find out?" A spark shined in Jak's eyes, and Torn knew when to back down.

"Where was I?" Torn muttered as he tried to remember what the mission was about. He knew where he had seen that spark before, in Dark Jak. He had not seen Dark Jak face to face, but he was able to put together the pieces from the rumors that spread about his cruelty. Torn knew that would not be able to hurt the little fuzz ball now with being torn apart by the creature inside Jak.

What really worried him though, was the thought that Dark Jak might be the same Jak across the table from him, not a different person that takes over. No, the fact that it might still be the same Jak did not worry him; it scared the living hell out him. Leaving these thoughts to be pondered when they left, Torn recalled what they were talking about; Dead Town.

"Ah yes, you have to retrieve that weapon from the old hut," Torn said, sounding like he forgot about the incident that happened not even two minutes ago.

"Forgetful one, ain't he?" Daxter muttered into Jak's ear. Jak grinned and nodded. Daxter looked into Jak's eyes and saw a part of the old Jak that he remembered. Jak looked into Daxter's eyes and grinned. Daxter saw the underlining idea of Jak's. His eyes said 'he won't forget it'. "Yeah, he won't, thanks buddy." Jak eyes showed that it was received and accepted.

"Are you two paying attention?" Torn snapped, not liking it when he was ignored.

"Should we be?" Daxter commented with a grin. Jak lightly shook his head while he slightly smiled. Torn's right eyes twitched, moving his tattoos, but he knew not to hit the little orange ottsel, now at least.

Torn growled a 'yes'. "Anyways, it will be heavily guarded so try not to get killed Jak, oh…and you too rat." With that Jak stood up and began to walk out of the Underground's hideout as he rolled his eyes. Daxter on the other hand, looked back to Torn and stuck his tongue out. He saw Torn pull out a blade and point the tip towards Daxter's head. Daxter quickly put his tongue back in his mouth and Jak left the Underground.

"Hey Jak," Daxter said after he turned around. Jak briefly looked in Daxter eyes, asking him to continue. "Do ya think tha' the jerk's as much of an ass as I do?" Daxter did not even wait for an answer as Jak grabbed a zoomer and drove to Dead Town. "Thanks again," he muttered and Jak began to smile. He took one hand off of the handles and lightly petted Daxter.

"Hey," Daxter said. "As much as I like the petting, I prefer to live." Jak's smile grew as he continued to pet Daxter. Daxter noticed this and was proud of himself. Out of all the people in Haven, he was the only one who was able to make Jak smile like he did back in Sandover. Jak stopped petting Daxter and focused on the road, he hit the brakes when they neared the entrance to Dead Town.

As they entered Dead Town, Daxter felt a chill run down his spine as his fur began to stand on end. Once they entered Dead Town, the door shut behind them. **Not good,** Daxter thought. "Hey Jak? I think we should get out of here." Jak sensed the fear in Daxter's voice and knew that it was urgent. He looked at Daxter as if to say 'What are you feeling Dax?'.

"JAK!" Jak looked back just in time to see a huge amount of energy heading towards him. Jak jumped out of the way and looked for any metal heads that would have shot at him. After looking everywhere, Jak gave Daxter weird look. **If it wasn't a metal head…then what-** but before Jak could finish this thought, Daxter yelled again.

"Run Jak!" Jak took this as good advice and made a run for it. As Jak jumped to a different chunk of earth, the ground that he was standing on earlier exploded, sending dust and mud everywhere. "_Wonderful!_ Just what I needed! Dust covered fur!" **Dax never changes, **Jak thought as he looked for anything out of place. Then he saw it.

Piercing eyes stared at him from Samos' old hut. The figure grinned at Jak, showing him sharp fangs. One thought kept running through Jak's head at the moment, **Oh shit**. Daxter looked to Jak once he had gotten most of the dust off of him.

"What's up?" Daxter asked. Daxter looked to where Jak was looking and freaked. "Um Jak? Maybe we should, oh I dun' know, GET THA' FUCK OUTTA HERE!" Jak looked at him and his eyes told Daxter that they needed to find the weapon first. "Jak, ya might not be obvious to tha fact tha' he's probably why this mission is dangerous!"

Just then, the earth beneath their feet began to shake. "Run?" Daxter suggested. Jak nodded as he began to run towards the hut. "Not tha' way!" Jak almost made it to the hut when all of a sudden; a huge creature came out of the ground. "FUCK! RUN JAK! RUN!" Jak jumped over the gap that separated him from the old hut. He looked around and saw that the creature that grinned at them was gone. Instead of wondering where it went, Jak began to search for the weapon. Daxter got off of his shoulder and looked also.

"I got it!" Daxter yelled. He was holding what looked like a bomb. Jak took it as Daxter climbed back up to his normal position. Just then, the entire hut shook. Jak looked out the dusty, broken window and saw a huge creature slamming itself into the only thing that kept the hut still standing. It had deep red colored scales and looked a bit like Kor. The only difference was it was a lot bigger, had no wings, and had a set of horns on top of its head, which it was currently using to try to knock them out of the hut.

"Can we leave now?" Daxter yelled. Jak nodded, but before he could move, the hut slanted greatly and then fell. Jak felt his feet lift from the floor and suddenly, everything went black. Daxter awoke and looked around him, he realized that he was no longer on Jak's shoulder instead; he was under a pile of rubble. He slowly climbed out and brushed himself off; that was when he noticed that he had a cut across his forehead. He looked around and was in shock.

The entire hut was destroyed, but the culprit was nowhere to be found. Broken wood and stone was everywhere, but Jak was nowhere. "Jak?" Daxter called timidly. He slowly walked around and realized that the hut had fallen into the water, creating a small island, knowing that he could not leave by himself; Daxter continued to call for Jak.

Daxter ears perked up as he heard a groan, followed by the sounds of stone falling onto other stone. "Jak!" He ran over to the where he heard the sounds to find him. Jak was indeed worse for wear. A thin line of blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. His breathing was ragged and shallow while he was covered in dust and small gashes.

"Are ya alrigh'?" Daxter asked. Jak nodded slowly, and stood up even slowler. Daxter climbed on his shoulder and they began to walk to the exit. Once they reached it though, a chill ran down both of their spines. They looked across and saw the figure standing where Samos' hut used to stand. He grinned again and pointed to Jak. Before either of them could do anything though, he pointed to his throat at swept his finger across it.

Before anything could be done about that, he disappeared. "What THE FUCK was that?" Daxter yelled. Jak shrugged, and slowly walked out to Haven. He made his way to the Underground on a stolen zoomer and tiredly walked into the Headquarters. Torn looked at them with an eyebrow raised. Daxter opened his mouth to comment but Jak raised his hand.

"Not a word," he said in a tired voice. Pain was letting itself be known throughout his entire body. He threw the weapon towards Torn. "I'm going to sleep, don't wake me for a while." With that said Jak slowly climbed into the bottom bunk with Daxter and fell asleep immediately.

Two figures were in the shadow behind Torn. "What did we tell you. Are you going to listen now?" Torn growled.

"Fine!" He said in resignation. Daxter listened to all of this, wondering what it all meant before he fell asleep. He was awakened early in the morning, along with Jak, by Torn.

"Mmm?" Daxter said as he tried to rub the sleep from his eyes. He looked over at Jak and noticed that he didn't even try to stay awake.

"It's been arranged," Torn said.

"What has?" Daxter asked.

"Samos and the Shadow have brought it up to me that Jak has barely been sleeping lately."

"And?"

"…He's sleeping again." Daxter looked up from where he was in Jak's lap and saw that he was sleeping while sitting up. Daxter climbed up to Jak's face and began to shake him so he would wake up. Jak slowly came through.

"Huh?" he asked tiredly.

"Now that everyone's awake, as I was saying, we have decided that…wake him up again rat." Daxter's eye twitched at being called rat, but he grinned at how Jak was pissing Torn off without even trying to. This time though, his shaking technique wasn't working. Daxter shrugged as he climbed back down and sat in his lap again. Torn leaned forward, making Daxter think that he was going to kiss Jak, but instead he yelled. "JAK, WAKE UP!" Jak's body jumped up, smacking his head against the bottom of the top mattress and metal bars that held it up.

"Damn it! What the hell was that for!" Jak growled as he held his head in pain. He fell asleep in pain just to wake up with it. Torn grinned.

"AGAIN, as I said earlier, we have decided to give you a week off with no missions. Samos has stopped Keira from giving you any races to do and Tess stopped Krew. So, be grateful."

"Yeah! A week off, what should we do Jak?" Daxter asked as he looked up to Jak. Jak grinned mischievously as Torn walked to his desk. "Ya thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?" Jak nodded. They got up and prepared for what they planned on doing to the unsuspecting elf.

Before they could get far in their planning though, Samos and Samos/the Shadow went over to Jak and Daxter. "Jak, we need to examine you," the older Samos said. A questioning look overcame Jak, luckily, Samos answered his question before he had to voice it.

"We noticed you were having difficulty with your breathing while you slept," the younger sage said. Jak nodded as he remebered the pain that was currently a dull throb. They also pointed out the dried blood on his body.

"You too, Daxter," the older sage said. Daxter mocked him but hid behind Jak before he was hit with Samos' walking stick. Jak and both Samos' had agreed that Daxter should be checked out by the younger sage while Jak got the older one.

"It's just as I feared..." Samos said after Jak pulled up his tunic.

Review for more. Oh and if you flame, I get even…actually I get more than even.


	2. Chapter 2

Standard disclaimer still stands.

Thanks for reviewing **Jebby**, **lioness of darkness**, **satan'stosterstrudel**, and **Bryan**.

Thoughts   
"…Jak's ribs are crushed." Samos said as he lightly pressed on the bruised skin. Jak's right eye twitched slightly at the pain, but he said nothing. "Not to mention many gashes that vary t how deep they are." 

"Well," the younger sage said, "Daxter's only has a small cut on his forehead and a little bruising to his arms and torso." Daxter looked at Jak and grinned.

"We did good this time," Daxter said as he gave Jak a thumbs up. "Least we aren't as bas as we was before. 'Member tha'?" Jak nodded and gave Daxter a small smile.

Ignoring Daxter, Samos continued his examination. "Looks like you might have punctured a lung. Take a deep breath Jak." As Jak inhaled, Samos pressed his ear to Jak's chest. "You have a bit of difficulty breathing, right?" Samos asked as he removed his ear. Jak nodded and Samos seemed to pause.

"Does this mean we get a longa' vacation?" Daxter asked with shimmering eyes.

Both Samos' rolled their eyes. "Yes Daxter," they both said at the same time. Torn grunted in the background, which went unheard by Daxter, who was dancing around. Jak was smiling at Daxter's antics.

"Sit down!" the elder sage bellowed, annoyed by Daxter's decision to shake his tail feather. Daxter, grumbling about old men who need to get laid, sat down. "Now, Jak," Samos said turning his attention to the renegade, "you are going to need to rest during your time off." Jak nodded in agreement as he reached for his shirt.

"Leave it off, Jak," Ton said. Daxter looked gapingly at Torn. **I knew he was queer! No way Ashelin would be into someone who prob'ly eats cigarette butts. Bet they gossip 'bout all they guys they find cute, like Jak. **Daxter thought as he pointed at Torn, eyes wide like a saucers. Realizing what he just thought, Daxter's eyes widened. **I didn' jus' think tha' Jak's cute. No way I think tha'. I like Tess. I hit on girls. Not Jak, even though he's got a gorgeous smile, an' glitterin' eyes…WHAT THE FUCK?!**

Jak looked at Torn with confused eyes. "Not like that," Torn said rolling his eyes. "If your lung was punctured, we've got to snap it back into place and bind the wound." **Good,** Daxter thought, **King Laryngitis doesn' deserve Jak anyways. Always sendin' us on missions to get us killed. Plus, he can't even get Jak to smile. …WHAT IS WRONG WIT ME???**

"We could just use green eco," the younger sage suggested. "But it will make Jak a bit tired."

"Fine," Torn said, "but give the rat some too, it might shut him up." Daxter opened his mouth to make a comment.

"Dax" Jak asked, looking at Daxter with weary eyes, "could you just let that one side?" Daxter looked at his exhausted friend and felt his heart melt.

"Sure thing, but only 'cause ya asked," Daxter said with a smile. Jak nodded and slowly began to close his eyes, still feeling tired from lack of sleep. Both of the Samos' began to create the green eco as Jak began to slump forward. Daxter ran over to Jak and jumped into his lap. "Hey babe," Daxter said pressing his paws against Jak's chest, "ya gotta stay awake, at least 'til they give ya the eco, K?"

Jak straightened a bit and gave Daxter a nod. "Sorry, Dax," Jak mumbled. Daxter gave Jak a smile.

"Don' worry 'bout it," Daxter said as he sat down on Jak's lap. "Hey! Geezers 2.0, ya done yet?" The elder Samos looked at Daxter.

"Almost, you flea-ridden ball of fur," he said as they finished creating the large ball of eco. "Here you go Jak," he said as he handed the glowing, green ball to Jak. Jak reached out his left hand and Samos placed it in his palm. The eco surged through his skin and immediately healed all of his wounds.

Jak felt all of his wounds heal and his bones reunite as warmth spread throughout his body. Feeling relaxed, Jak's eyes closed as he struggled to stay awake. "Don't worry, Jak. Ya can go to sleep now," Jak heard Daxter's voice and submitted to the warmth.

Daxter watched as Jak fell backwards on the bed. He turned to the sages and saw them creating another ball of eco, only smaller. "Here you go, Daxter," the Shadow said as he handed the eco to Daxter. Daxter took the ball and felt the eco heal him and the warmth fill him. He curled on top of Jak's chest and fell asleep.

The sages grabbed the corners of the blanket and covered Jak and the small ottsel as they slept.

Daxter awoke and looked at Jak. **He's like an angel when he sleeps,** Daxter thought. **…I can' be fallin' in love wit Jak. I can't be. AAARGH! I AM!!!** Dax sighed in defeat as he sat up. Daxter stretched as he heard Jak mumbled something in his sleep. Looking at Jak, Daxter saw him turn slightly before looking away.

"Where is ev'ryone?" Jak asked, sleepily slurring his words.

"Don' know," Daxter said as he jumped off of Jak and Jak sat up. "So, how are we gonna get Mr.-Pain-In-The-Ass back?"

Jak yawned as he thought about it. "I don't know what do you think we should do?"

Daxter seemed to think about it. "Hmm, it's gotta be BIG!!!" Daxter said waving his arms for emphasis. "Huge, even! …Something…something that'll make him scream."

"Hmm," Jak seemed to ponder this. "Like _Operation: Jackal_?" Jak asked with a smile. Daxter's eyes lit up as he looked at Jak.

"Exactly!" Daxter shouted. "It's perfect!!! But where are we gonna get a-" Daxter was cut off as he heard the front entrance open. Heels quickly hit the steps as Ashelin burst into the room.

"Where the hell were you Jak?" Ashelin nearly shouted as she glared at him. "We need you to get to-"

"Nope!" Daxter shouted, "we're on vacation, Sweet Stripes. Go bug Torn, he'll tell ya." Daxter really wanted to get her out of the room so he and Jak could plan the painful demise for their "leader".

"Where is he?!" Ashelin growled, obviously not happy with the decision to not let her in on the situation with Jak.

Daxter shrugged, "Don' know, don' care." Ashelin stormed off into another room in the Underground. "I pity Torn, …well, not really. Maybe we should get outta here before this place becomes a murder scene." Jak nodded and stood up. Daxter clung to Jak's bare shoulder as Jak looked around for his shirt.

Jak found it and Daxter jumped onto the floor as he waited for Jak to put on his shirt. **A shame he can't walk around without it,** Daxter thought, feeling his mouth water. **…Dammit!!!** Jak strolled into Haven and hijacked a zoomer. Jak looked at Daxter.

"Where to?" Jak asked as he sped off.

"…Haven forest!" Daxter said in Jak's ear. Jak nodded his head slightly and drove off to the forest entrance. **When we're in the forest alone,** Daxter thought, **sometimes Jak will go into the water with me …naked.** Daxter smiled as they waited for the door to open.

Once they were inside the forest, Jak headed straight towards the large lake with Daxter on his shoulder, almost as if he could read Daxter's mind. Secretly, Jak had noticed the way Daxter looked at him when he was naked and wet. **Daxter makes my heart race when I see that look in his eyes,** Jak thought as they reached the large pools of water.

Daxter swallowed when Jak stopped in front of the water. **Mar, don't tell me that Jak is gonna go in wit clothes,** Daxter thought. **…Maybe Jak knows how I feel about him? …I hope not, …but if he does, maybe that's why he strips in the forest. ..Nah. He can't like me, …can he?** Daxter's thoughts were interrupted as he felt Jak lift him up.

Jak placed Daxter on the ground in front of him as he slowly removed his shirt. Daxter felt his mouth water and he swallowed slowly. Jak then removed his boots and socks. As Jak began to undo his belt, he looked as Daxter and noticed that his eyes were firmly plated on Jak's belt.

Smiling, Jak removed his belt and started to undo his pants. Hooking his thumbs into the waist of his pants and boxers, Jak pulled them down. He stepped out of his pants slowly, and bent down towards Daxter.

**Oh, fuck,** Daxter thought as he stared at Jak. Daxter was staring at Jak like he would disappear if he so much as blinked. Jak bent down towards Daxter and picked him up. Still smiling, Jak stepped into the warm water.

**I've got a little surprise for Daxter,** Jak thought as he released Daxter into the water. Daxter snapped out of his trance and began to lazily swim in the water.

**Mar, he's gorgeous all over,** Daxter thought, still unable to get that image out of his head, not that he wanted to. "Hey, Dax," Jak said, getting Daxter to look at him. "I've got something that I want to tell you."

Review to find out what happens next.


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